Merry Christmas from the Bluegrass everyone!  The day dawned bright and beautiful sans snow but at least it wasn't raining.  Nothing worse than rain on Christmas...unless it's warm temperatures.  I know, many people would disagree but to me Christmas means cold and preferably snow filled.  As a child I remember the anticipation of Christmas spent at my Granny and Ampaw's.

What is an Ampaw?  Welcome to the South, full of Grannies, Nanas, Memaws, Mamaws, Mawmaws. Not too many Grandmas or Grandmothers here. We have a few Grandads or Grandpas, almost no Grandfathers.  Here we call them Papaws, Pawpaws, Papoos, and in my case Ampaw.

Christmas at Granny and Ampaw's meant that my cousins from North Carolina would be visiting. At that time they were the only cousins we had on my mom's side of the family and we only saw them at Christmas and  when they would come stay for a large part of the summer (that meant month long camping trips for us all but that's another story).  Granny always cooked enough for a small army.  Growing up there had been periods in her life where she, her parents, and siblings (there were 19 people in the at home) had very little food.  The same was true for Ampaw who lived during the Great Depression.  Those events in their lives had a lasting effect on the way food was viewed in their house.  First and foremost no one ever went hungry.  If you did, that was by your choice.  When unexpected company would arrive the first thing Granny would do was to cook them "a bite to eat". I remember many many stories told by people (complete strangers to me) at both my grandparent's funerals about how their mothers would come visit with the children knowing that the kids would be fed because there was no food in their own homes.

Holiday meals were always mind boggling.  A huge turkey and country ham were the centerpieces.  There was also a "city ham" or picnic ham "just in case".  Then there were the sides.  Home made cornbread dressing, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese (baked, not stove top) sweet potatoes (that my Ampaw raised), corn, green bean casserole, broccoli casserole, baked beans, greens, slaw, green beans cooked w/ ham hocks, oyster casserole, cornbread salad, pea salad, fruit salad, seven layer salad, deviled eggs,  angel biscuits, cornbread, dinner rolls, and then the desserts! Jam cake, coconut cake, chocolate fudge, cherry fudge, peanut butter fudge, divinity, sea foam candy, potato rolls (mashed potatoes sweetened then spread with peanut butter and rolled into a log), almond "strawberries", peanut butter balls, pecan balls, and blackberry cobbler.  The only thing on the table that wasn't made from scratch was the cranberry sauce that came straight from the can and was sliced along the tin ridges. Dinner was 'served' at noon but it was a day long graze.

It wasn't unusual for there to be 40+ people in attendance.  The house was for grown ups so unless we were eating, the kids were sent outside.  My grandparents were tobacco sharecroppers so there was always acres and acres of farm and woodland to roam.  Back then the winters were colder (this was the 80's mind you, so not so very long ago) and the creek would usually be partially frozen.  The kids would schooch along testing the edges to see how far we could go out before the ice broke.  The creek was never more than 3 inches deep at this time of year, so we were in no danger of drowning.  When we got thirsty we'd go break off a piece of ice and suck on it; my little sister was sure to fall in the water at least once if not a few more times.

Christmas today is much different.  The family hasn't gathered in that number in twenty years.  Even our core family, my grandparents, aunt, uncles, and cousins don't anymore.  Ampaw passed in 2010 and Granny passed just this spring.  My mom's siblings decided that they didn't want a family dinner at all so today my parents and I (my sister was killed in '96) will dine alone.  We decided to start our own new tradition, instead of the huge feast of the past we are instead feasting on seafood.  Dad is having swordfish, while Mom and I are having scallops and king crab legs.  As nice as this is, I miss the Christmas' of my childhood. Christmas just isn't the same when you are an adult.

Its that time of year again....The time when everyone realizes that it's mid December and last year's New Year's resolutions have gone by the way side. I admit mine did.  This year I've decided that I'm going to start my resolutions early.  That sounds like dedication does it not?  I won't lie; I'm one of the worst resolution breakers I know.  In fact, generally I don't even make them.  I can't break them if I don't make them; thereby I don't feel like a failure come December 31st. Also, I'm off work for the week between Christmas and New Years, so why not get a head start?

This year my big goal is to work on building a healthier me.  After 35 years I know I will never be skinny, it's just not in my genetic code.  What is in my genetic code is heart and lung disease, as well as diabetes. So what I want is a leaner, meaner body. I have amazing blood pressure for someone, quote "my size"; it's completely normal which amazes and puzzles my doctors. My cholesterol has steadily been creeping up over the years, but is still good.  It's just my weight that kicks my ass.

About ten years ago I went on this big "diet" kick to make myself skinny.  I'm ashamed to say I tried the fads...grapefruit, Atkins (that one nearly killed me literally), Weight Watchers (gained weight on that one). Through it all I learned that "diets" don't work.  Yes I lost weight, I went from a size 24 to a 12 BUT once I stopped eating the diet I steadily gained it back, thankfully not all of it but way more than I ever wanted to see again. Two positive things that I did learn from that time period:

A)Food diaries are a good thing.

B)I have to limit my carbs.

Stop right there. I can hear people screaming now.  I know my body needs carbs (Atkins fiasco), they are fuel the body.  BUT I have to carefully choose my carbs.  I call them "natural carbs" and "processed carbs". More veggies and fruit; less bread, pasta, and sugar.

My plan for the healthier me is to:

1) Add one additional exercise at least 4 days a week. I already walk 3-5 miles every day but need to add to it.  Maybe some yoga or free weights. Any suggestions?  And no, I'm not joining a gym so pick something else.

2) Cook more, eat out less.  Not sure how this is going to pan out at work.  Stupid rules.  We can't use the fridges and have no way to heat food...I hate cold lunches. I love to cook and over the last year I haven't taken the time to do it.  I am worth the time!

3) Go back to logging everything I eat or drink.

I also think I'll post some info here on the blog throughout the year. Maybe you all can help keep me motivated into and through 2012!

So the New Year's resolution that I made last December 31st was to hike at least once a month.  At the time it didn't sound that hard, after all winter, spring, and fall are my favorite seasons to be outside.  Also, the resolution would make sure I didn't completely hibernate during the hot humid summer months.  Needless to say this was a resolution I did not keep, though I did force myself in to the woody sauna that is Central Kentucky during August.  

Last night when I went to bed I was on the fence about hiking today.  Where would I go?  When should I wake up?  I finally decided that I was going to hike the Eagle Falls trail at Cumberland Falls State Park.
I've been out to the main falls many times and have wanted to take the side trail out to view Eagle as well as different perspective of the big falls.  For some reason my alarm went off at 5:00 a.m. And of course I promptly  turned it off, rolled over, and went back to sleep.  Somewhere around 9:30 a leaf moved outside and my dog thought there were intruders trying to break in.  Finally out of bed I realized that it was a little late to go ahead with my plans. It takes almost 2 hours from my house to get to the state park and by the time I got there it would be after noon.  In the summer, that wouldn't be an issue...the sun is out until well past 8:00.  But here, with the start of winter just days away, the sun would start setting much earlier.  I'm a "snail" hiker and stopping to gawk and take pictures is a must. I didn't want to rush so what to do? I was ready to call it a day before my day even started.  Finally I decided on a "compromise". No, I didn't have time to make the drive but there was plenty of time to head over to Raven Run.

Raven Run has been my "go to" spot since my college days.  In some ways its become boring.  I know it like the back of my hand.  If nothing else, heading out would get me in the woods, maybe show some rock formations that I haven't been able to photograph when the foliage is thick.  In all honesty, I wasn't expecting a lot from the hike today, thinking of it almost like a chore. Turns out it was one of "those" days on the trail.  No leaves, no animals, no noise, and almost completely un-peopled.  I think I have the UK-UNC basketball game that was being played at the same time to thank for that, but I never look a gift horse in the mouth.

Thanks to the time of year I was able to see some unusual flora:

And some anomalies:

But the real reason I had wanted to go to the fall was to see water...which thanks to the recent torrential rains we've had:

There is nothing more centering or soothing to me than the sound created by a waterfall.  All in all it was a fantastic day.  I'm kinda glad I slept in. I think I have a new hashtag for twitter:

#Youknowitsagreatdaywhen